Grant gives volunteers tools for helping single mothers

Dolores (not her real name) is a single mom with two children, a minimum wage job, and no family nearby. She works hard and does her best to provide for her family. Dolores depends on her car to get her kids to school and herself to work each day. Keeping up with her cars' maintenance used to be a constant concern - until she learned about the Single Mom's Car Care Program.  

   The program was sponsored by the Assembly of God Church in Washington, Indiana. Volunteer mechanics perform routine car maintenance and repairs once every three months, rotating locations to ensure their services are accessible to single mothers throughout Daviess County.

   "The thing that amazes me in a project like this is that God always provides," says Jeff Frederick, who oversaw the program. "Every time we've wondered where the funding for our Car Care Program would come from, we've been blessed with support from any number of sources - donations from local businesses, mechanics who volunteer their skills and work in heat or cold or rain or shine, and through private gifts - without having to ask. But the program has grown so much that now we need a few tools and supplies that we can keep on hand for use every time, instead of borrowing them every three months."

   The Daviess County Community Foundation recently awarded a first-time grant to help Frederick and his volunteers purchase the tools and supplies they need. Frederick says that in the last seven years, volunteers have helped more than four hundred single mothers in Daviess County. The program has been so successful that it was recently expanded to include the spouses of armed services members stationed overseas.

   "Knowing that someone out there cares enough to help with my car maintenance and safety, and the safety of my children, gives me faith and hope for a better future for my children and me," says Dolores. "This community cares about its citizens, whether we are young or old, wealthy or struggling. Not only do  the volunteers change oil and filters and check tires and brakes and lights, but if there is a serious problem, they do their best to help me solve the problem. No one judges me; they just give support and care."